The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1887-01-06
THE ELECTION LAW.


ton law has been in operation long
enough to demonstrate its weakness.
1t was enacted to prevent fraud at eiec-
tons, but it opened the door to worse
frauds than had ever been attempted
Ifany party would give the matter at
tention and expend the money neces-
sary, the frauds might be prevented
provided the registration officers ana
election judges were all honest men ana
would faithfully perform their duties
But these are vain and idle suppose
tons, The officials are not all honest
and fair, and political parties are
afflicted with the idea that what is
everybody's business is nobody's busi-
ness. Wherein the law is failure is in
the fact that it does not compel a
frequent and thorough revision
of the registration lists. The
act was passed in 1878, and there was
no session until 1882, when the admin
istration of the act was placed in the
hands of the commission appointed
under the Edmunds act, and since then
there has been no revision. The conse-
quence is that there is not county list
in the Territory which is not carrying
many names of persons who are no
longer voters. On the Park City list,
there are perhaps three names for
every two voters in the district; IN this
city the registration, as shown by the
list, is fully fifteen per cent. larger than
the number of actual voters. True, the
law requires the registration officer to
visit every dwelling house each year,
land make careful inquiry if any per
son, whose name is on the list, has
died or removed from the precinct,
or is otherwise disqualified as a
voter of such precinct, and If so. to
erase the same therefrom," but when
has this been done. and by which regis
tration oficerf Instances have been
reported where the registrar took it
upon himself to erase the names OF
some who had not died, removed from
the precinct, or been disqualified, but
no such thing as q revision or puritica-
ton of the list has been attempted.
Names of the dead and of those who
have gone from the precinct are car
ried year after year, and it is generally
believed that many fraudulent votes
have been cast in these names. There
is certainly an opportunity tor such
fraudulent voting, and where the oppor-
tunity exists it is usually taken advan-
tage of. The law also provides for the
hearing of objections to the right to
vote of any person registered. until
sunset of the fifth day preceding the
day of election; but who knows of any
such objections having been made,
or whe believes action would be taken
on the objections if they were to
run against the party to which
the person to decide belonged2 Be-
sides, this is a matter in which the pri-
vate citizen does not care to interfere ;
| IL Is WOIk luz LILO AhoAo6CAo O4 iaO POAAe
ical parties. If the stories told of the
recent registration for the coming
municipal election in Ogden are true,
the list there bears the names of many
persons who are not entitled to vote,
and if the popular impression is correct,
the purpose of the Liberal managers is
to see that parties vote in these
names.
A law which makes such frauds as
have been practiced and are again con-
contemplated possible, lacks much of
being perfect. 1t needs amendment,
and in this instance needs it badly. At
its next session the Legislature should
mend the defects in the law, and close
the door against the frauds at elections
which are every year becoming more
shameless, and in the meantime, the
Peoples Party managers would do well
to try to have erased from the registra-
ton lists all names which ought not to
be there. The publication of the Ogden
list at this time may save the election
by preventing the success of the con-
templated Liberal steal.
1